The murder of the Trincomalee MP has taken up a lot of media attention. Among those killed in that brutal attack was a young civil engineer, Ratnarajah, who leaves behind a pregnant wife and an year-old daughter.
It is a great pity that the media totally ignore the lives of “little people” like Ratnarajah. For it is people such as him (and perhaps other “little people” who died with him) who make a society that is worth living in. He was a committed Christian who, out of his Christian convictions, chose to stay and serve the people of the eastern province. First in Batticaloa and then in Trincomalee he was responsible for the construction of several school buildings for underprivileged children. He had a reputation for scrupulous honesty and fairness, and this earned him the hatred of some local politicians and engineers. He was always quick to pass on the latest building skills to foremen and contractors, because he was anxious that they should upgrade and expand their capabilities. The poor, he believed, deserved nothing but the best where professional competence was concerned.
Such an attitude among our professionals is extremely rare. The Trincomalee MP was so impressed with this young engineer that, on the way to the school-opening ceremony, he dropped in at Ratnarajah’s house and insisted that the latter accompany him. Hence his death.
Such are the life-stories that the media should be relating. Such are the models of selfless service that our children, of whatever ethnic or religious community, should be exposed to. Unfortunately, it seems that the only “heroes” our children see on TV are mindless gangsters and equally mindless politicians. Almost every English film running in Colombo these days has the word “die” or “death” in its title. Hindi, Sinhala and Tamil films blindly follow American trash. The censors are so preoccupied with nudity that they turn a blind eye to gratuitous violence. We are already a nation obsessed and brutalized by two decades of violence. Why do we need celluloid violence on our screens?
I am not arguing that films should never depict violence. What I object to, is the way acts of gruesome violence in films are totally dislocated from their human context. The man whose head is blown off by a shotgun-toting “macho” hero in the typical Hollywood “blockbuster” was, probably, the father of two little children and a voluntary nurse in the local clinic... Serious art explores the effects of violence on human lives and human communities. It is such art that our cinemas and TV channels need to encourage, and our mercantile sector needs to sponsor.
Is it too much to expect that we can create a new generation that has the moral sensitivity to be sickened and repelled by violence? It would require a co-ordinated effort on the part of the media, teachers, responsible businessmen and parents. If we continue to hope that constitutional changes and legislation (important as they are) will by themselves bring about an end to the culture of violence in our country, I suggest that we have not begun to grasp the depth of our national crisis.
The most fundamental feature of a democratic Society is the freedom of expression and the freedom of assembly for its people. Equally important is the freedom of the press, where the community can be informed of the public activities of their elected representatives as individuals or when they are in forum such as in parliament.
Censor this freedom in any way shape or form and you have a deformed democracy whose leader will be viewed with suspicion and distrust.
The age-old proverb that ‘The pen is mightier than the sword’ still remains true. From time to time adventurous journalists will go overboard to get that ‘exclusive’ story or a saucy photo for reasons well known, but there is no profession on earth that is immune from extremists who will push opportunity to the limit to enjoy 15 minutes of fame.
However, the court case surrounding the contents of a gossip column in the ‘Sunday Times,’ which President Kumaratunga found personally offensive enough to effect criminal defamation charges against the editor of this esteemed journal is a sad feature of a deformed democracy.
If President Kumaratunga felt so offensive by the contents of the gossip column, regardless of any truth of the matter she would have been better advised to write a stern letter to the editor of the newspaper and demand a public apology rather than escalating the matter to the courts using archaic British Law.
The irony is that the British themselves today enjoy such glorious freedom of the press that if the press in Sri Lanka were ever to be liberalised to that extent, we would have a better account from our politicians and from the government of the day because their public activities would be under constant scrutiny.
I would like to join the queue to place another garland around the Editor’s neck for his courage to uphold the noble tradition of his profession and not disclose the sources of his information under pain of incarceration.
Mr. Ratnatunga must take comfort in the fact that this sad event will bring about more pressure on the government to decriminalise the act of defamation and confine it to a civil offence. History will judge him a victor.
Reading your correspondent Chamintha Tilakaratne’s story in The Sunday Times of July 6, I give below my experience of obtaining a passport at this office. I arrived at Station Road, Bambalapitiya on July 2, around 10 a.m. to renew my lapsed passport. I did so with some trepidation having read and heard of the trials and tribulations one is supposed to encounter on this mission.
I did see a crowd at the end of Station Road and cautiously I inquired from a Police Constable as to how I should get about my task. He pointed out a queue and asked me to join it to get an application form (Form ‘K’) which is the first requirement. The queue was moving fast and in about fifteen minutes I obtained the form. On glancing through the directions I found that photocopies of the Birth Certificate, I.D. Card, photographs etc were needed. I stepped into a studio almost opposite this office and not only got my requirements but the necessary information as to how the form should be filled in, by the courteous manager.
The next day, armed with the documents I returned to Station Road office. The security guard directed me to counter No. 15. There were two clerks, a cashier and an Assistant Controller at this counter. The first officer examined my documents and returned my original Birth Certificate and I.D. Card. He passed the other papers to the Asst. Controller who examined and approved them. I was then sent on to the second clerk who once again scrutinized the documents and passed them to the cashier. After paying the fee I inquired as to when I could expect the new passport. On being informed that it would be posted in about a month’s time. All this did not take more than 15 to 20 minutes.
I am of course a Colombo resident but would like to confirm that no undue inconvenience, harassment or rudeness was encountered by me during this entire transaction. I thought the arrangements made by the Department were good and well handled by the staff.
It is not all a bed of roses for those living in the city as those interviewed quite frequently on the TV Channels from the war-torn areas invariably make it out to be. Their main contention has been that the city dwellers are living a plush life whilst they are destined to suffer.
Little do they know that the city folks are engaged in a different type of war - the struggle for survival. No successive Governments have ever made any concerted effort to overcome the ever-spiraling cost of living.
The local bodies too have jacked-up their rates. The unit rate of water has been raised. Telephone rates have gone up. Electricity charges too have increased and above all a rental and BTT tax have been levied.
A kilo of big onions at the Sathosa is Rs. 30/= but outside it is sold between Rs. 10/- and Rs. 20/-. Who then is the real culprit? All these factors and more contribute towards making life in the city a big bore and a real misery. So much so that they are bound to seek greener pastures in the countryside, for a more tranquil and peaceful life.
Those in the villages don’t have to bother about any of the above levies. Freshly grown vegetables are available in plenty. Coconuts could be obtained almost free. Fresh waterfalls and wells provide natural drinking water and generally a villager is much more healthier and active than the town folk. That, perhaps maybe one of the reasons for their longevity - inhaling and exhaling unpolluted air. The villager, therefore, has no cause for concern.
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